Some creative and technology professionals in Wichita are participating in a shift in the American work force — a move away from the traditional employer-employee relationship toward a world of free agents.

Intuit, a firm that produces software for small businesses, predicts that by 2020, 40 percent of the American work force will have alternative work arrangements, such as independent contracting, freelance or part-time arrangements.

The Wichita Business Journal spoke with six Wichita professionals who have opted to forgo the comforts of a full-time job at a single employer for the freedom of independent contracting. They like the flexible schedules, the fact that they can choose which projects to pursue and the fact that they can often make more money on their work. But they say hiring independent contractors and freelancers doesn't just benefit them; it also can help the companies doing the hiring.